that greatness of foul, which does good to all men, and forgives their offences; these sentiments fo ftrongly recommended by the fages of antiquity, and fo much refined in our religion, these real laws of nature which have been always fo little obferved. You have corrected many faults in this performance, and you are confcious of the imperfections that still remain. May the public, the more fevere to me, as it has been already the more indulgent, excuse these imperfections as you have done!

May at least this homage which I pay you, madam, laft longer than my other writings! It would be immortal if it were worthy of the perfon to whom it is addreffed.

I am with profound refpect,

Madam,

Your most obedient, and

Moft humble Servant,

DE VOLTAIRE.

PRE

PRELIMINARY DISCOURSE

To the Tragedy of ALZIRA.

TH

HE author has endeavoured, in the following tragedy, which is of pure invention, and wrote in a new manner, to fhew how much the true spirit of religion is fuperior to the virtues of nature. The religion of a barbarian, confists in offering to his gods the blood of his enemies. A chriftian ill inftructed, is often as unjuft: To be a ftrict obferver of uselefs ceremonies, and negligent of the real duties of man; to repeat certain prayers, and preferve his vices; to faft, but continue to hate, to cabal, to persecute; fuch is his religion.* That of a true christian, commands him to look upon all men as his brethren, to do them all the good he can, and to pardon them when they offer him an injury.

*It is obvious that monfieur de Voltaire, in this paffage, alludes particularly to roman-catholic re ligion.

Such

1

Such is Gufman* at the hour of his death; fuch is Alvarez † in the whole course of his life; fuch have I represented Henry the fourth, even in the midst of his weakneffes. Most of my writings respire this humane difpofition, which should be the chief character of a thinking being: They all fhew, if I may fo express myself, the defire of the happiness of mankind, the horror of injuftice and of oppreffion; and it is this alone, which has rescued my writings from that oblivion, to which their many faults naturally condemned them. It is on this account that the Henriade has held up against the repeated efforts of fome jealous Frenchmen, who were abfolutely resolved that France should not produce an epic poem.

There are always a few readers who fuffer not their judgment to be biaffed by the

+ Characters in Alzira, one of monfieur de Voltaire's fineft tragedies.

An epic poem, wrote by monfieur de Voltaire when he was confined in the Baftile. It is compared by many french and foreign readers, to the beft poems of antiquity, and by a few it is thought fuperior to any.

venom

venom of cabal or intrigues, who love truth, and who look for the man in the author. Such are the perfons in whom I met with favour. To fuch I offer the following reflections; I hope they will forgive the neceffity I am under to publish them.

A foreigner one day in Paris expreffed his furprise at the load of libels which continually appeared in public, and the cruel outrages that were daily levelled against one man. It is probable, fays he, this is fome ambitious perfon, who would fain poffefs himself of one of those employments which ftir up the common defires and envy of mankind. No, it was anfwered him, he is an obscure fubject, retired from the world, who lives more with Virgil and Locke, than with his countrymen, and whose face is as little known to fome of his enemies, as to the man who pretended to engrave his picture. He is author of fome pieces which have forced tears from your eyes, and of fome other works, in which, notwithstanding their many defects, one is

pleased with that fpirit of humanity, of justice, and of liberty, which runs thro' them all. Those who calumniate him, are men that pretend to dispute with him for a little smoke, and who will perfecute him while he lives, for no other reason, but for the pleasure he has given you. The foreigner felt fome indignation against the oppreffors, and fome good-will towards the injured author.

I think it hard, I must own, not to obtain from one's cotemporaries and countrymen, what may be expected from foreigners, and from pofterity. It is cruel, it is difgraceful to human nature, that literature should be tainted with these perfonal animofities, these cabals and intrigues, which should be confined to the flaves of fortune. What do authors gain by reviling each other? They dif honour a profeffion which it was in their power to render refpectable. Muft the art of thinking, man's best attribute, become the fource of ridicule; and men of parts, who have made themselves, by their quarrels, the fport of fools, be the

jest